A deep grinding sound split the air, a roar that filled the canyon—a sound so deep Liam felt it in his chest, vibrating through the ground beneath his boots. The rocky ledge where Nimue stood began to crack. Stone splintering. Crumbling.
“Nim!”
Her scream pierced the night—sharp, desperate, terrified.
Then, just like that, the ledge gave way, taking her with it into the canyon’s hungry mouth.
No.
Everything inside him shattered.
Nim was gone.
Fire consumed her.
Pure agony shooting through her side, stealing her breath as she sprawled on the narrow ledge like a broken doll. Her body shook from impact—adrenaline, shock, pain all mixing into one brutal cocktail.
What just happened?
Her mind scrambled to catch up. She’d been standing on solid rock, staring at distant flashlights, lips parting to tell Liam she didn’t think they were Bratva. Then his face had gone white. The ground had betrayed her. And gravity had taken over.
For one terrifying heartbeat, she’d been certain death was rushing up to meet her.
The fall had been brief but vicious. Her body twisting through space, ankle wrenching, ribs slamming into jagged stone that felt like it wanted to crack her open.
She lay still, forcing her racing thoughts to take inventory.The pain centered on her ribs and ankle—throbbing, but not so bad that it meant broken bones. Then again, the lack of pain could be the adrenaline talking. She managed a shallow breath, testing. No bones poking through skin. No blood pooling beneath her.
Bruised ribs. Maybe cracked. Swollen ankle that screamed “Don’t even think about walking.”
She’d live.
But probably without Liam in her life.
Stupid, stupid, stupid.She should’ve told Liam about the gold bar immediately.
Then she’d compounded her mistakes by standing too close to an unstable edge after a flash flood.Brilliant, Nimue. Really brilliant.
Canyon Dangers 101: Solid-looking rock often sat on soil ready to give way without warning. She was living proof now, sprawled on this ledge like some cautionary tale.
Worse—those flashlights were still out there. If they belonged to the Bratva, she was trapped. Helpless.
“I’m okay!”
The words came out as a croak instead of a shout, effort stabbing through her ribs like a knife.
Real convincing.
Faces appeared above against the darkening sky just before a flashlight hit her in the face.Ahh.She closed her eyes.
“She’s not dead.” A voice she’d guess was Michelle’s spoke, a little shaky. “We totally thought you were dead.”
Join the club.
“Get back!” Liam’s bark at the teenagers carried real authority. “We don’t know how unstable the edge is!”
“I’m fine.” Okay, she didn’t sound in the least fine. She tried sitting up. Pain exploded through her side and ankle, forcing her back down with a gasp that made stars dance behind her eyelids.
Maybe not fine.